How To Think Like Bill Gates

Over the years, I’ve asked various people at Microsoft about how Bill Gates thinks.

I’ve asked people from his speech writers to people that have survived his executive reviews, where Bill is known for his grueling interrogations.

I was always curious how somebody of that caliber flexed their mind and used their skills to slice and dice problems.

Bill Gates Thinks Differently

Bill Gates sees and thinks differently than most people do. He has an amazing ability to find the flaws, or see opportunities, or connect the dots.

He can zoom in to details with precision or zoom out to the big picture.

He can flip back in time or fast forward to the future. He also has the ability to focus on the merits of the idea or innovation before worrying about the business case.

Use Bill Gates’ Thinking Skills to Gain Advantage

Chances are, you could benefit from Bill’s thinking skills, even if it simply means getting a new perspective on your problems. Whether you’re trying to change the world, or you want to unleash your best, it doesn’t hurt to be able to leverage the thought patterns of a billionaire and one of the world’s most influential philanthropists.

10 Ways to Think Like Bill Gates

While I don’t think Bill will lend you his brain, you can do the next best thing. You can take some of this thought patterns and practices for a test-drive. Here are ten patterns to get you started:

1. Prioritize.

“What’s the next best thing you should be thinking about?” It starts here. Time is your most limited and precious resource. This is about asking whether the problem is even worth your time. Before you throw cycles at it, figure out whether it’s worth it. Is it significant? How much time should you spend on it? For an example of how Bill Gates figures out how to prioritize, check out the following video: Bill Gates on Mosquitoes, Malaria, and Education.

2. Ask smarter questions.

If you want better answers, ask better questions. Rather than getting stuck in one line of questioning, such as "what’s wrong with this?" or "what’s right with this?", you can explore your thinking more deeply, by asking a range of questions. One of the skills we learn at Microsoft is Precision Questions / Precision Answers. In this approach, there are 7 categories of precise questions: 1) Go / NoGo - Do we need to talk about this? 2) Clarification – What do you mean? 3) Assumptions – What are we assuming? 4) Basic Critical Question – How do we know this is true? 5) Causes – What’s causing this? 6) Effects – What will be the effects? 7) Action – What should be done?

3. Make data-driven decisions.

This is one of the toughest switches to make. By default, most people make emotional decisions and then find data to support the decision. This means asking questions like, “what’s the data say?” This means getting informed, before you make your decision. This means evaluating the sources of data. It’s an extreme exercise in emotional intelligence to pause your emotional response, while you check your logic and critical thinking.

4. Divorce your ego.

This is where you separate yourself from the problem. This is also about separating yourself from the solution. Instead, you hold the problem or solution out in your hands and inspect it from different angles. Rather than focus on whether you’re right, it’s about whether the solution is right. It’s about being able to beat up the thinking, without taking it personally.

5. Frame the problem.

Framing a problem is simply how you look at a problem, just like how you frame a picture. It’s about choosing what to focus on, what’s in and what’s out. When you frame the problem, you bound it. Framing also helps you get a better perspective on the problem, as well as share the problem more effectively with others. Some questions to help frame a problem include: Who’s the customer? What are their needs and priorities? What’s happening in the market? What are competitors doing? What are our options for responding? How do we differentiate? How is technology changing and what possibilities does it offer our customers? What are the priorities for our business?

6. Get perspectives on the problem.

This means being able to switch your perspectives. Rather than see the glass half-full or the glass half-empty, you should see both. Challenge yourself to switch back and forth from finding flaws to finding opportunities. If you only know how to play the Devil’s advocate, you have a limited view. Like a multi-faceted diamond, you should be able to look at the problem from different angles. This also means being able to broker in experts and get other people’s perspective on the problem. Problem solving is a team sport. It’s also about leveraging smart people without domain expertise. For example, you can take a dev manager in consumer devices and have him/her move into the enterprise or business applications.

7. Model the problem.

By abstracting the problem into a model, you can think about it in simpler ways, without being bogged down by the implementation details. One of Bill Gate’s favorite tools is his whiteboard. A whiteboard makes it easy to sketch out ideas and visualize them. A whiteboard can help whether you’re trying to map out the problem or draw a solution. Keep in mind that George Box taught us that, “all models are wrong, but some are useful.”

8. Think of the system and the ecosystem.

Bill Gates has an engineering mind. He can see the problem as a system. You can map out the system by asking yourself questions along the line of, what are the bits and pieces? … How does it work? … How do the bits and pieces work together? … what’s the flow through the system? … what are the inputs and outputs? After you have a handle on the system, you can ask yourself about the ecosystem or the system of systems.

9. Think of the problem over time.

It’s easy to look at the problem and just see it as a static snapshot. The challenge is playing out the problem or your solution over time. Time can dramatically change what it looks like. Consider the impact of trends. Consider sustainability. Some things that look good only temporary, and really break down when you apply time to them. Sometimes time is on your side. You might find that there may be better windows of opportunity.

Check Your Thinking Against Bill Gates

If these thought patterns and practices don’t stand out as different or extraordinary, contrast them with some common default patterns:

less focus on emotional intelligence and more driven by emotional reaction

more likely to start thinking about a problem before asking which ones

more likely to ask a limited range of questions, from one specific angle or perspective (such as Devil’s advocate)

more likely to get lost in the details of the problem rather than step back, model it, and play with possibilities, unlikely to see the challenge as a system or think about the ecosystem (the players, the key levers, the centers of gravity … etc.)

unlikely to think about the problem over time (especially larger time frames like 1 year, 3 years, 5 years … or consider trends)

unlikely to think strategically over tactically, or get mired in tactical details before evaluating strategic options and differentiators, strengths, or weaknesses.

The good news is, thinking is a skill and there are plenty of resources that we can use to improve our thinking techniques. One of my favorites is Edward de Bono’s Six Thinking Hats.

43 COMMENTS

I notice how all Mr. Gates’ questions are very open-ended. Smart indeed.

We can think strategically in blogging too, timing posts or guest posts just right, writing in batches when creativity hits, maximizing on Stumble It under the “Weblogs” category by visiting blogs in that category when we have a post up that would especially appeal to or be of help to bloggers.

Great post, I really enjoyed this one. I especially appreciated the anti-patterns at the end, it made the usefulness really stand out. Its easy to look at your 10 ways and not realize how revolutionary they are without the contrast with what’s common.

J.D., I enjoyed this post and found that 1. 2. 4. 5. 9. 10 were most applicable to me right now.
I love the idea to divorce the ego, and to hold the problem and solution in our hands without becoming one with it. This can create new angles, perspectives 🙂 I also enjoyed this pattern: less focus on emotional intelligence and more driven by emotional reaction
I’m currently mulling through some ideas/solutions but in essence it has all to do with responding to something that is tugging on my heart. I’m looking at the angles in my hands right now and considering, and being willing to experiment as needed, as the time comes (waiting for divine nudges). Thank you for an excellent post! Warmly, Jenn Z

Thank you JD – this is awesome. So many people would love to get a glimpse into the mind of Bill Gates, so this is an amazing gift you’ve given us.

I’m going to come back and print this out later today and check out those links. But now I have to go back to your first point – prioritize. I’m way behind with my studies – I have an assignment to hand in tomorrow and I haven’t even thought about starting it.

What perfect timing. Over the Thanksgiving holiday I watched a show on Bill Gates. I am in awe of his brilliance, and you’re right; we could all learn a lot from him and his thought processes.

The part that really struck me is where you say to ask if the problem is even worth our time. When I think about it, I use to get involved in problems that weren’t mine. Now I’ve learned to recognize that and move on. What a time saver that is.

Like Patricia, I’m going to copy this post and reread it again later. There’s a lot to digest. Thank you for sharing so much value.

This is really great stuff you’ve shared! I’m looking at and thinking about where I am – and see much I can do. The idea of prioritizing is huge for me – one that will help me focus better. It’s easy for me to get caught up in what can be with too many things – and then not really prioritize at all…

I wonder if there could be more said of Bill Gates’ communication skills and how well he can empathize with whomever he is talking. His ability to find those words to describe things in a simple yet powerful way is something worth noting in how the world sees Bill Gates.

I loved the point about divorcing your ego. That is so true and often that is what prevents people from growing and learning. They want to think that they know it all and no one knows it all.

Also, it is important to mention that Bill Gates worked his ass off to get where he is and he really loved what he was doing. You do not become a legend by accident…you really work hard to get there and do what you can to grow and learn.

I love these tips for thinking like Bill Gates, and I recognize some of them from the book “How to Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci.” My favorite is “ask smarter questions.” If you foster curiosity, then all things are possible!

Nice insights J.D., In addition to the amazing things he did with Microsoft I’ve been fascinated by the direction he and his wife are taking the foundation in. Many efforts can be improved by bringing a different perspective.

Hi JD .. I just watched the Bill Gates video .. good timing for me – I’d wanted to watch it before but 20 minutes wasn’t available. He is an amazing man and appears to be so human, despite being so brilliant – and as Nadia said – he worked hard for his present status .. as a philanthropist.

You have set these points out so well .. and I too will be back to review and take them in properly. I enjoyed the TED talk though … and your reference back to your session at Microsoft earlier this year in PQ/PA ..

Blogging is a really good example. If you’re going to throw your energy into something over so much time, it’s good to think about the ROI and making your best moves. After all, it’s your life force you’re spending day after day.

@ Karl

Using emotions as input, but making data-driven decisions is one of the most effective ways to gradually improve your life.

@ TheAnand

One of the phrases that helped our group was “expose the thinking.” Everybody on the team, got use to sharing their thinking separate from themselves.

Thank you. It seemed like the antipatterns really do help make the patterns pop.

@ Patricia

Thank you. It’s a small set of patterns, but each one can really help get results. Thinking about your thinking is an art and science.

@ Jenn

Sometimes testing your results is the best way to go. Once you know what you want or want to accomplish, then you can experiment to find the best path. Sometimes the key is figuring out what you heart wants for the long run, then using your mind to figure out how to get there.

@ Cath

Thank you. Before Microsoft, I just thought he was a gifted smartie. Now I realize, while yes that’s true, there’s a discipline to thinking and you can always improve your skills.

It’s good to think of your logical mind as another resource. I’ll use my emotions as input and check what my gut says so I can leverage intuition, but I’ll also use logic as input to make smarter choices.

@ Barbara

Bill’s pretty amazing. Because he has so much capability, he really has to prioritize where he spends his time so he makes the most of his impact.

When you’re a good problem solver, it’s easy to take on other people’s problems, and it can be addicting. It’s good you’re making thoughtful choices over what to take on.

@ Lance

Thank you. There’s always more things to do than time in the day. Prioritization is our friend 😉

@ JB King

He really does have a great way of using his words. He seems to be able to take complex thoughts and say them in a way that’s easy to follow.

I think these are pretty timeless patterns and really get to the root of good thinking and judgment.

@ Alik

Thank you. When you can frame your problems with precision, divorce your ego, and evaluate the data, you’re kicking arse and taking names. It gets easier with practice. The ego part can be tough unless you think in terms of finding the best answer or best approach for something. It takes the focus off you and puts it onto the problem and solution.

@ Hilary

He’s amazingly human, yet. when he’s in his arena, he’s like a super hero from another planet.

I’m glad he uses his super powers for good. They say power corrupts, but he’s a great example of using his power to change the world for the better.

First of all – thanks for this great post. I found some rally helpful suggestions in there.

I have one question: are these thinking skills actually from Bill Gates? I mean, how do you came up with this list? Did he say these things (where) or is it your interpretation of how he thinks based on what you read about him?

Again, I find this post very valuable in and of itself already, and just want clarification on the source of this info 🙂 thanks.

I’ve based these patterns on three key things:
1. Interviews with people that worked closely with Bill
2. Analyzing the culture he shaped and created (for example, creating a focus on Precision Questions and Precision Answers, creating a culture of exposing and checking your thinking, etc.)
3. Observing what he says in does (He often shares his framework and thought process in his talks, such as through the questions he asks, or the way he parses a problem)

Soooo insightful and very well summarised, JD. Not only is Bill a prolific thinker and an extraordinary technologist, he is one of the best business strategists of all time. His unlimited mental capacity, intense focus, extreme competitive nature, and insatiable drive for success has propelled him beyond any technologists and entreprenuers, certainly of his generation and in many cases beyond. He’s right up their with Henry Ford and Thomas Edison!